urbanMSP

Yeah, I don't see a reason why Minneapolis Public Schools shouldn't be under state direction. Consistent mismanagement by unserious people paired with an irrational electorate that doesn't want solutions. This isn't a Minneapolis-only problem, but it is exacerbated there by years of bad charter ...

quagga wrote: September 1st, 2026, 10:31 am What a shocking and unpredictable outcome. I look forward to everyone here learning absolutely nothing from this experience.

Am I forgetting a reason that this was entirely predictable?

I would suggest we really just need Train Robert Moses: one guy who has all the power and authority to just build what needs to be built. That way, no one has to chip in $60 million~ in local road improvements to please Robbinsdale city councilors who, let's face it, are by-day hotel managers and by ...

Here's a thought: what if they're waiting for development interest to pique in the area and get a developer to pay for the road extension? Secure the right-of-way so a developer can't cut off the new street, but wait to build it until a developer is willing to do it for you.

I hear an NBA team ...

Bonding bills take 60% to pass both houses unless the either party has 41 seats in the Senate and 81 seats in the House plus the Governors Mansion the other party call either kill the bill or at least for negotiations


Correct, but when the DFL controls the bonding committee, they can present ...

I'd also offer that the divided state house was probably none too keen on funding anything in Minneapolis or St. Paul. Right-wing nutjob Mary Franson was the Republican lead on the bonding committee, and I suspect there was very little overlap between DFL and MAGA priorities this year.

When the DFL ...

Every few months on this forum we have this discussion, and every few months I feel I have to remind the thread that transit is not just about making money and filing seats. It's about keeping pace with our peer metros while we compete for businesses and transplants. It's about shifting ...

Investment in a police facility doesn't bother me necessarily. I think I would question whether that's the best use of scarce tax dollars and if it's needed now at all, but unlike some Minneapolis residents, I'm not offended by the mere idea of police facilities.

On the other hand, I am bothered by ...

The reality is that it probably just has to be an empty office building until the Minneapolis market catches fire again. Taking it down is probably economically infeasible and a residential conversion seems hard too. Maybe it could be filled up at a lower rental rate, but as others have pointed out ...

Two problems with the "tear down 33 South Sixth proposal:"
Dismantling a skyscraper is really, really expensive. This would be the third tallest tower ever dismantled, and every other similarly tall tower was disassembled was torn down to build a taller tower. There's simply no way the Timberwolves ...

Contrarian opinion: the exterior of the building is fine. It will never be the best looking building in downtown, but it doesn't need to be. It is not somehow ruining the skyline. The costs of either modifying the exterior or demolishing the building are going to be astronomical.


Full agree ...

It's worth pointing out, as the study does, that the 46's worst subsidies were on weekends in 2024, but weekend service only ran for one month that year in December. The weekday subsidy was high too, but not nearly as bad.

And the study certainly doesn't suggest that crosstown routes are naturally ...

The Met Council's legislatively-mandated study on high-subsidy routes is out. Shocking no one, the majority of high-subsidy routes are suburban local routes run by MVTA.

I don't know what inspired this study, but I'd bet it was probably Northstar (which had the second-highest subsidy in 2024) and a ...

The Consultant-Industrial Complex strikes again. The private provisioning of public services needs to stop.

This should be an issue both parties can agree on, and I think it's possible a minor housing reform bill makes it through. But honestly, I think our political environment is so toxic and dysfunctional that a split government is not going to achieve anything.

The State House speaker is running for ...

Considering Minnesota Republicans think they smell blood in the water, I anticipate very little of legislative substance will be achieved this session. There will be a lot of grandstanding on fraud and Trump and next to no legislative work.

Has either party even teed up stuff they want to do ...

Anyone know who updates that information locally? Is it the City of Mpls? A group? A crazy dedicated volunteer?

The cycling view is super helpful and I’d volunteer to get the ball rolling on updating the Mpls data if I knew who to contact. I’ve never updated anything on OpenStreetMap but I’m ...

And it comes with the political benefit of being neither a Minneapolis nor a St. Paul route. Pleases all factions.

let's tear down that awful Hennepin County Government Center tower


You and I have very different ideas about what an awful tower looks like

But more importantly, I don't think any two-block site downtown is gonna cut it. Two blocks strung together are still probably too narrow for a modern NBA ...

Ramsey County's Pennsylvania Avenue concepts are out here .

All options eliminate the freeway-stubness of the road, but only one eliminates the grade separation. All options include provisions for the Purple (Bronze?) Line.

I wonder if bus lanes + roundabouts is a workable concept for a lot of ...